Your First Look at Today's Top Stories - Daybreak Insider

Having trouble viewing this email? View the web version.

Sponsored By

Wednesday, August 24, 2022

Subscribe for free to the Daybreak Insider Podcast, and hear the latest reporting and analysis on these stories and more every weekday morning. Click here to subscribe.

Don't miss The Daybreak Daily — scroll to the bottom of these top news stories

Twitter Whistleblower Reveals Irresponsible Cybersecurity Policies, Some Related to Musk’s Acquisition

Washington Post: Twitter executives deceived federal regulators and the company’s own board of directors about “extreme, egregious deficiencies” in its defenses against hackers, as well as its meager efforts to fight spam, according to an explosive whistleblower complaint from its former security chief. The complaint from former head of security Peiter Zatko, a widely admired hacker known as “Mudge,” depicts Twitter as a chaotic and rudderless company beset by infighting, unable to properly protect its 238 million daily users including government agencies, heads of state and other influential public figures (Washington Post). CNN: Zatko further alleges that Twitter’s leadership has misled its own board and government regulators about its security vulnerabilities, including some that could allegedly open the door to foreign spying or manipulation, hacking and disinformation campaigns. The whistleblower also alleges Twitter does not reliably delete users’ data after they cancel their accounts, in some cases because the company has lost track of the information, and that it has misled regulators about whether it deletes the data as it is required to do. The whistleblower also says Twitter executives don’t have the resources to fully understand the true number of bots on the platform, and were not motivated to. Bots have recently become central to Elon Musk’s attempts to back out of a $44 billion deal to buy the company (although Twitter denies Musk’s claims) (CNN).

Liz Cheney Works With Koch Network, Trump Consultants in Possible Presidential Campaign

CNBC: Republican Rep. Liz Cheney has amassed a group of political consultants with ties to former President Donald Trump and the expansive Koch network as she mulls a run for the White House after losing in the GOP primary for her Wyoming House seat. Cheney’s role as vice chair of the committee investigating Trump’s actions in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol has cost the third-highest ranking Republican in the U.S. House her standing in the GOP and her seat in Congress. She lost the Republican nomination in a landslide race last week to one of Trump’s picks, Wyoming lawyer Harriet Hageman (CNBC). PJ Media: Cheney’s only role if she runs for president would be as a spoiler to keep Trump from winning. Cheney is now setting herself up to sabotage the Republican Party just as the party is under maximum assault from radical partisans in the Democratic Party (PJ Media). Interactive Polls: 2024 Presidential General Election: (R) Donald Trump 40% (+8). (D) Joe Biden 32%. (I) Liz Cheney 11% (Twitter).

US Authorizes $3 Billion in Ukrainian Aid

Associated Press: As Russia’s war on Ukraine drags on, U.S. security assistance is shifting to a longer-term campaign that will likely keep more American military troops in Europe into the future, including imminent plans to announce an additional roughly $3 billion in aid to train and equip Ukrainian forces to fight for years to come, U.S. officials said. U.S. officials told The Associated Press that the package is expected to be announced Wednesday, the day the war hits the six-month mark and Ukraine celebrates its independence day. The money will fund contracts for drones, weapons and other equipment that may not see the battlefront for a year or two, they said (Associated Press). Reuters: Washington has provided $10.6 billion in military assistance to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s government since Feb. 24 (Reuters).

Rep. Jerry Nadler Beats Out Rep. Carolyn Maloney in Highly Contested Democrat Race

CNBC: Rep. Jerry Nadler will defeat his colleague Rep. Carolyn Maloney in a vicious House primary that locked the longtime New York Democrats in a battle for the heart of Manhattan, NBC News projected. The two lawmakers were pitted against each other after a redrawn district map spurred them to compete for a single seat in Congress. Nadler, 75, and Maloney, 76, have represented adjacent chunks of the island for about three decades. Both hold powerful seats in Congress: Nadler chairs the House Judiciary Committee, while Maloney leads the House Oversight Committee (CNBC). Full election results can be found here (New York Times).

Florida Republicans DeSantis, Rubio Look Ahead to November

NBC: Rep. Charlie Crist cruised to primary victory over Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried Tuesday night in Florida… But heading into Election Day, few Democratic insiders and political observers gave either Crist or Fried much of a chance in November, citing every recent public poll showing DeSantis leading Crist. As DeSantis’ historic $140 million re-election war chest grows by the day, national Democrats have signaled they won’t invest in Florida as heavily as in the past (NBC). Townhall: Rep. Val Demings won the Florida Democratic primary on Tuesday night to challenge Sen. Marco Rubio, a Republican, come the fast-approaching November midterm elections (Townhall).

President Biden Expected to Make Student Loan Forgiveness Decision Wednesday

CNBC: President Joe Biden could make his announcement on student loan forgiveness as soon as Wednesday, five sources with knowledge of the matter told NBC News. Administration officials repeatedly said the decision would come before the end of August, when monthly loan payments are scheduled to resume after being paused for over two years as part of a pandemic-era relief policy. The country’s outstanding student loan debt balance exceeds $1.7 trillion, with 40 million Americans in debt for their education (CNBC). Bethany Mandel: Do I get a refund for the payments I made on time and in full (Twitter)? Washington Times: The Penn-Wharton Budget Model found that forgiving $10,000 of student debt per borrower for families with incomes of up to $125,000 annually, a plan Mr. Biden could authorize as soon as this week, would cost the federal government $329.7 billion in lost revenues over 10 years (Washington Times).

Yolo County: 70% of Suspects Released on Zero Bail Reoffend

If criminals do not pay for their actions, they will repeat them. Fox News: A California district attorney has found that more than 70% of criminal suspects released on $0 bail between 2020 and 2021 in his county committed new crimes. The California Judicial Council in April 2020 implemented the statewide Emergency Bail Schedule, or $0 bail, which supporters say makes the criminal justice system more fair for those who cannot afford to get released (Fox News). Dennis Prager: These people got the message that violence is fine. They got the message in another way from the Democratic Party. Because if you steal under $950, you essentially are not prosecuted. That is the message that went out. That violence is okay (Daybreak Daily).

New House Sales Drop to Six Year Low While Price, Mortgage Rates Skyrocket

Fox News: Sales of new U.S. homes plunged more than expected in July to the lowest level in six years as rising mortgage rates and the relentless increase in home values slowed activity by edging prospective homebuyers out of the market. New single-family home purchases tumbled 12.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 511,000 units, the Commerce Department reported on Tuesday. It marked the sixth consecutive month of declines. Economists surveyed by Refinitiv expected new home sales – which account for a small percentage of total sales – to fall 2.5% last month (Fox News). New York Post: Mortgage rates, which move in tandem with US Treasury yields, have soared even higher than the Fed’s benchmark overnight interest rate. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is averaging 5.13%, up from 3.22% at the start of the year. Despite slowing demand, house price growth remains strong. The median new house price in July was $439,400, an 8.2% jump from a year ago. There were 464,000 new homes on the market at the end of last month, up from 450,000 units in June (New York Post).

U.S. Warns: Russia May Step Up Attacks on Ukraine’s Independence Day

Fox News: The U.S. on Tuesday warned it believes Russia is “stepping up efforts” to launch missile strikes on Ukraine as its Independence Day nears. “The Department of State has information that Russia is stepping up efforts to launch strikes against Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure and government facilities in the coming days,” the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine alerted. The six-month anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24 coincides with Ukraine’s Independence Day Wednesday and officials are worried Russia will use the moment increase its aggression beyond the frontlines (Fox News). NBC: As a precaution, independence day celebrations have been canceled across the country, including in the capital, Kyiv, with Ukrainians told to avoid large gatherings. Local authorities — from Kharkiv in the east to Lviv in the west — have warned people to pay more attention to air raid sirens, respect curfews and work from home, if possible (NBC).

10.

Jean-Pierre? Jean-Pierre? No White House Press Briefing in Two Weeks

Has anyone noticed or cared? National Review: An observation: White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has not held an on-the-record press briefing since August 9 . . . and nobody in the White House press corps or general public seems to be all that bothered by that. (Apparently democracy dies in darkness, unless it’s August vacation season.) The lack of complaints probably says something about the news value of these briefings, where Jean-Pierre contends the U.S. economy is stronger than ever, that the U.S. Supreme Court took an “unconstitutional action” by overturning Roe v. Wade, and that she has a hard time keeping up with Biden’s boundless energy level and stamina (National Review).

NEW in your inbox daily — The Daybreak Daily

Featured

Dennis Prager | The Dennis Prager Show

7-Eleven Looting: “These people got the message that violence is fine”

Dennis Prager blames both criminals and Democrats for the lawlessness in our streets

Dennis Prager: Here is a piece from Channel 4 in Los Angeles, NBC 4. “Watch: Street Takeover ‘Flash Mob’ Swarms Los Angeles 7-Eleven. Grand theft, looting and vandalism are some of the crimes police say were caught on video when a large crowd took over a 7-Eleven.” Only young people, of...

Sebastian Gorka | America First

Gorka on Sam Harris Video: “The quiet part was said out loud”

Sebastian Gorka and Victor Davis Hanson react to Sam Harris admitting that there was “absolutely” a “left-wing conspiracy” to defeat Trump

Dr. Sebastian Gorka: Professor Hanson, there is a video clip actually from friends of mine, the podcast TRIGGERnometry is hosted by two British friends of mine who were in my studio not too long ago. They interviewed Sam Harris. They released this video. It has gone viral. My buddy Dan Bongino...

Hugh Hewitt | The Hugh Hewitt Show

Election 2022: “It will be about six things”

Hugh Hewitt spells out “the Three A’s and the Three E’s” that will be on everyone’s mind in November

Hugh Hewitt: Elections will get underway and it will be about six things. I want you to remember these six things: three A’s and three E’s. Affordability. Because we can’t, we don’t afford anything. God bless the parents who have to put three, four, five, six kids into schools this fall and...

Eric Metaxas | The Eric Metaxas Show

Winning Back America: “Democracy is not a spectator sport. We have to participate”

Eric Metaxas talks with author and columnist Kurt Schlichter about how the battle for America is winnable — if we fight

Eric Metaxas: Kurt Schlichter is my guest right now. He has a new book out called, “We’ll Be Back: The Fall and Rise of America.” Kurt Schlichter, welcome. Kurt Schlichter: Hey, thanks for having me. It’s right that you know of me. I’m an amazing person. I’m modest, shy, retiring. I’m...

Brandon Tatum | The Officer Tatum Show

Sebastian Gorka: “If you don’t fight for America, it will be taken away from you, and you will never get it back”

Brandon Tatum and Sebastian Gorka discuss the motives of the unprecedented raid of President Trump’s home at Mar-a-Lago

Officer Tatum: Let my audience know, Sebastian, what you think about the raid into President Trump’s personal home and what does this mean from a political perspective? Dr. Sebastian Gorka: Well, first things first, every president has a legacy clearance. Even if you leave the White House, you...

Dinesh D' Souza | The Dinesh D'Souza Podcast

Big Tech Censorship: “They are, in fact, private actors operating through constant collusion with the government”

Dinesh D’Souza exposes the “smoking gun” connection between Big Tech and the U.S. government in restricting free speech

Dinesh D’Souza: I want to talk about some new information that has been uncovered by America First Legal and shared with the Washington Free Beacon. But before I get to that, I want to talk about the meaning of censorship. The meaning of censorship in the legal sense is not merely the idea that...

Mike Gallagher | The Mike Gallagher Show

Liz Cheney’s Primary Loss: “This is a day for celebration”

Mike Gallagher cheers a victory not just for the GOP but for America

Mike Gallagher: The people of Wyoming didn’t defeat Liz Cheney. I mean, she was obliterated. And the idea that her whole life has been now dedicated to stopping Trump from returning to office — I’ve tried to take you through this on a number of occasions. And I want to do it one more time...

Charlie Kirk | The Charlie Kirk Show

Jeremy Adams: “Hey, other adults in America! We have a profound problem here with our young people”

Charlie Kirk talks with author and teacher Jeremy Adams about how digital addiction is making kids disconnected, distracted and depressed

Charlie Kirk: This is a topic I care deeply about. And there’s a new book out called Hollowed Out by Jeremy Adams, “A Warning About America’s Next Generation.” This is one of the most important topics happening right now in America. It’s not political, at all. It’s cultural, it’s...